Filipina nurse wounded by artillery fire in Tripoli: DFA

MANILA – A 60-year-old Filipina nurse was wounded by artillery fire in the outskirts of the Libyan capital of Tripoli on Saturday, the Department of Foreign Affairs reported Sunday.

In a bulletin, the Philippine Embassy in Tripoli said the nurse sustained a shrapnel wound in the shoulder after an artillery round exploded outside the housing compound where she and several other Filipino hospital workers were staying.

“The nurse is the third Filipino casualty since the outbreak of fighting in Tripoli more than a year ago. Two other Filipinos had been wounded in rocket attacks in other parts of Tripoli during the early months of the fighting,” Embassy Chargè d’Affaires Elmer G. Cato said.

In an advisory, the embassy advised Filipinos to relocate if they live in areas where exchanges of artillery, heavy weapons or small arms fire are taking place.

It added that doing so would keep Filipinos from getting caught in crossfires.

To date, more than 1,000 Filipinos who are mostly hospital workers remain in Tripoli and surrounding areas.

Earlier, the Embassy already raised its concern over the possibility that Filipinos may end up as collateral damage after several hospitals in Tripoli have been struck by artillery shells.